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Usability specialist education requirements
Updated January 8, 2025
4 min read
There are several educational requirements to become a usability specialist. Usability specialists usually study psychology, human computer interaction, or computer science. 66% of usability specialists hold a bachelor's degree, and 26% hold an master's degree. We analyzed 160 real usability specialist resumes to see exactly what usability specialist education sections show.
The most common colleges for usability specialists are the University of Michigan - Ann Arbor and the University of Michigan - Ann Arbor.
There are also many online usability specialist courses to help get the education required to be a usability specialist.
What education do you need to become a usability specialist?
What degree do you need to be a usability specialist?
- Bachelor's, 66%
- Master's, 26%
- Doctorate, 4%
- Associate, 2%
- Other Degrees, 2%
What should I major in to become a usability specialist?
- Psychology, 25%
- Computer Science, 8%
- Graphic Design, 7%
- Other Majors, 50%
Most common colleges for usability specialists
| Usability specialist common college | Percentages |
|---|---|
| University of Michigan - Ann Arbor | 13.04% |
| University of Maryland - College Park | 8.70% |
| Tufts University | 6.52% |
| Kansas State University | 6.52% |
| University of California - Davis | 6.52% |
Best majors for usability specialists
| Rank | Major | Percentages |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Psychology | 25.3% |
| 2 | Human Computer Interaction | 9.9% |
| 3 | Computer Science | 7.7% |
| 4 | Graphic Design | 6.6% |
| 5 | Computer Applications | 5.5% |
Best colleges for usability specialists
The best colleges for usability specialists are Northwestern University, Carnegie Mellon University, and Duke University.
A usability specialist with advanced education typically earns a higher salary and has access to better jobs. That's why Zippia looked into the best colleges for usability specialists. We based this list on several metrics: admissions rate, retention rate, mean earnings of graduates, the ratio of working vs. non-working students ten years after admission, the average cost of attendance, and median debt for graduates who become usability specialists.
1. Carnegie Mellon University
Pittsburgh, PA • Private
In-state tuition
$55,465
Enrollment
6,483
2. University of Maryland - College Park
College Park, MD • Private
In-state tuition
$10,595
Enrollment
30,184
3. University of Washington
Seattle, WA • Private
In-state tuition
$11,207
Enrollment
30,905
4. Duke University
Durham, NC • Private
In-state tuition
$55,695
Enrollment
6,596
5. San Jose State University
San Jose, CA • Private
In-state tuition
$7,796
Enrollment
27,125
6. University of Michigan - Ann Arbor
Ann Arbor, MI • Private
In-state tuition
$15,262
Enrollment
30,079
7. SUNY College at Oswego
Oswego, NY • Private
In-state tuition
$8,440
Enrollment
7,039
8. Northwestern University
Evanston, IL • Private
In-state tuition
$54,568
Enrollment
8,451
9. Washington University in St Louis
Saint Louis, MO • Private
In-state tuition
$53,399
Enrollment
7,356
10. California State University - Long Beach
Long Beach, CA • Private
In-state tuition
$6,798
Enrollment
31,503
20 best online courses for usability specialists
Advertising disclosure
1. User Research and Design
In this course you will learn and practice techniques of user research and early UI design exploration. First, you will learn and practice several techniques for user research, including in-person research and survey and log-analysis techniques. Then, you will learn to analyze and deliver user research in forms that support UI design, including personas, use cases, tasks, and scenarios. Finally, you will learn and practice ideation techniques that start from user research and broadly generate...
2. Usability Testing Boot Camp
Boost your web site's user experience by learning how to run your own usability test from start to finish...
3. UX Design Process from User Research to Usability Testing
UX Process for Beginners from User Interviews to Personas, User stories, Information architecture to Usability testing...
4. Fast-start Usability Testing and UX Research - Begin Today!
Beginner to advanced in mere hours! Learn to confidently use modern, effective usability testing and UX research methods...
5. User Experience (UX): The Ultimate Guide to Usability and UX
Get a job in UX and build your user research and UX design skills with this hands-on user experience training course...
6. How to carry out a usability expert review
Learn how to find and fix usability and user experience bloopers in web, software and mobile user interfaces...
7. UX Fundamentals: Practical Usability for Product Design
Avoid common mistakes in product design by learning usability principles and analysing tens of real-life examples...
8. User Experience Design & User Interface Design Fundamentals
Learn the basics of successful User Experience Design and User Interface Design...
9. How To Design for Accessibility: for UX Designers (WCAG 2.2)
2023 Accessibility & Usability Best Practices for UX & UI Designers (User Experience + WCAG 2.2, Section 508, ADA)...
10. UX Fundamentals: User Testing
Get better in UX by understanding your users...
11. UX Design for Beginners - The Essentials of UX + Usability
Learn User Experience Priciples & Human Behavior Patterns and Apply them to improve UX Design of Websites & Mobile Apps...
12. User Research And Testing For UX Writing
How To Prepare And Test UX Writing Decisions With User Research...
13. Learn User Experience Design from A-Z: Adobe XD UI/UX Design
Learn how to become a professional UX/UI Designer and create beautiful websites and applications from scratch...
14. Figma UI/UX Web Design & Animation with 6 Projects (2023)
Become UI/UX Designer in 2023, Complete Figma Web Design with Animation & Micro-Interaction, From beginner to advanced...
15. User Experience Design: Complete UX Fundamentals Course
Understand User Experience Design ( UX ) to begin designing web and mobile apps to keep your users engaged and happy...
16. Learn Figma: User Interface Design Essentials - UI/UX Design
Master Figma app to get a job in UI Design, User Interface, User Experience design, Web Design & UX design...
17. UX & Web Design Master Course: Strategy, Design, Development
Learn how to apply User Experience (UX) principles to your website designs, code a variety of sites, and increase sales!...
18. The Complete User Interface Design Bootcamp - Sketch UI/UX
Master Sketch software to get a job in UI Design, User Interface, User Experience design, Web Design & UX design...
19. Master Digital Product Design: UX Research & UI Design
A complete design education for product designers: Research the user experience, then design a great user interface...
20. UX Research for Apps: User-centric from Concept to Launch
How do you design apps that connect with customers and get them excited? Find it with this complete UX research toolkit...
Top 10 most affordable universities for usability specialists
The most affordable schools for usability specialists are California State University - Long Beach, hunter college of the city university of new york, and university of south florida.
If the best universities for usability specialists are out of your price range, check out these affordable schools. After factoring in in-state tuition and fees, the average cost of attendance, admissions rate, average net price, and mean earnings after six years, we found that these are the most affordable schools for usability specialists.
1. California State University - Long Beach
Long Beach, CA • Private
In-state tuition
$6,798
Cost of attendance
18,306
2. Hunter College of the City University of New York
New York, NY • Private
In-state tuition
$7,182
Cost of attendance
13,998
3. University of South Florida
Tampa, FL • Private
In-state tuition
$6,410
Cost of attendance
20,456
4. University of Florida
Gainesville, FL • Private
In-state tuition
$6,381
Cost of attendance
21,034
5. Brigham Young University
Provo, UT • Private
In-state tuition
$5,620
Cost of attendance
18,136
6. California State University - Dominguez Hills
Carson, CA • Private
In-state tuition
$6,942
Cost of attendance
14,469
7. Queens College of the City University of New York
Queens, NY • Private
In-state tuition
$7,338
Cost of attendance
14,281
8. Florida International University
Miami, FL • Private
In-state tuition
$6,556
Cost of attendance
19,434
9. Florida State University
Tallahassee, FL • Private
In-state tuition
$5,656
Cost of attendance
21,623
10. Baruch College of the City University of New York
New York, NY • Private
In-state tuition
$7,262
Cost of attendance
14,046
Top 10 hardest universities to get into for usability specialists
The hardest universities for usability specialists to get into are Northwestern University, Carnegie Mellon University, and Duke University.
Some great schools for usability specialists are hard to get into, but they also set your career up for greater success. The list below shows the most challenging universities to get into for usability specialists based on an institution's admissions rates, average SAT scores accepted, median ACT scores accepted, and mean earnings of students six years after admission.
1. Northwestern University
Evanston, IL • Private
Admissions rate
8%
SAT average
1,508
2. Carnegie Mellon University
Pittsburgh, PA • Private
Admissions rate
17%
SAT average
1,507
3. Duke University
Durham, NC • Private
Admissions rate
9%
SAT average
1,516
4. Washington University in St Louis
Saint Louis, MO • Private
Admissions rate
15%
SAT average
1,506
5. Stanford University
Stanford, CA • Private
Admissions rate
4%
SAT average
1,497
6. New York University
New York, NY • Private
Admissions rate
20%
SAT average
1,419
7. University of Michigan - Ann Arbor
Ann Arbor, MI • Private
Admissions rate
23%
SAT average
1,434
8. Johns Hopkins University
Baltimore, MD • Private
Admissions rate
11%
SAT average
1,513
9. Swarthmore College
Swarthmore, PA • Private
Admissions rate
9%
SAT average
1,465
10. Tufts University
Medford, MA • Private
Admissions rate
15%
SAT average
1,461
Top 10 easy-to-apply-to universities for usability specialists
The easiest schools for usability specialists to get into are Notre Dame de Namur University, mount saint mary's university, and curry college.
Some schools are much easier to get into. If you want to start your career as a usability specialist without much hassle, check out the list of schools where you will be accepted in no time. We compiled admissions rates, average SAT scores, average ACT scores, and average salary of students six years after graduation to uncover which were the easiest schools to get into for usability specialists.
1. Notre Dame de Namur University
Belmont, CA • Private
Admissions rate
82%
SAT average
983
2. Mount Saint Mary's University
Los Angeles, CA • Private
Admissions rate
84%
SAT average
1,031
3. Curry College
Milton, MA • Private
Admissions rate
93%
SAT average
1,026
4. Wayland Baptist University
Plainview, TX • Private
Admissions rate
98%
SAT average
1,003
5. Life University
Marietta, GA • Private
Admissions rate
94%
SAT average
979
6. Kean University
Union, NJ • Private
Admissions rate
86%
SAT average
991
7. La Roche College
Pittsburgh, PA • Private
Admissions rate
99%
SAT average
1,008
8. Notre Dame College
Cleveland, OH • Private
Admissions rate
90%
SAT average
994
9. University of the Incarnate Word
San Antonio, TX • Private
Admissions rate
88%
SAT average
1,044
10. Cardinal Stritch University
Milwaukee, WI • Private
Admissions rate
71%
SAT average
1,035
Average usability specialist salary by education level
| Usability specialist education level | Usability specialist salary |
|---|---|
| Master's Degree | $112,288 |
| Bachelor's Degree | $91,804 |
| Some College/ Associate Degree | $67,909 |
Usability specialist education FAQs
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Updated January 8, 2025
Updated January 8, 2025